Just joined the Sous Vide club

[Rocklobster]

GF gifted me with a beautiful sous vide machine for my b day this week..I'm really looking forward to using it now..I was a bit indifferent to it in the past as I felt that food was already good enough with our more traditional methods of preparing them..tonight's first attempt will be steak, which is probably what most people use it for..hoping to get some ideas as we move forward...so if anybody here has any suggestions, let me know..I'm open..

 

[powerplantop]

Steaks are very popular this way. But I do recommend experimenting with cheaper cuts. Beef cheeks sous vide make great tacos. Chuck Roast makes a great steak. Chuck Roast Steak with Mushroom Sauce / Sous Vide

Have not tried it but hear that corn is great this way. Its on my list to try soon.

 

[caseydog]

I love mine. It is great for steaks. Pork tenderloin is another good meat for sous vide. I also get great results with fish in the sous vide.

I'm guessing you know that you have to sear your proteins after cooking sous vide. I use a Searsall, but a scorching hot skillet works, too.

CD

 

[Rocklobster]

I love mine. It is great for steaks. Pork tenderloin is another good meat for sous vide. I also get great results with fish in the sous vide.

I'm guessing you know that you have to sear your proteins after cooking sous vide. I use a Searsall, but a scorching hot skillet works, too.

CD

My oven has a wicked hot broiler element so I set it on high for bit with the pan on the top rack, then take it out and let it sit on a high burner for another few minutes..works great, stays very hot for searing both sides..

 

[Rocklobster]

Steaks are very popular this way. But I do recommend experimenting with cheaper cuts. Beef cheeks sous vide make great tacos. Chuck Roast makes a great steak. Chuck Roast Steak with Mushroom Sauce / Sous Vide

Have not tried it but hear that corn is great this way. Its on my list to try soon.

I am looking forward to trying as much as I can..I enjoy the fact that I can come home to something that is almost done and won't take too much more work or waiting to eat..

 

[JustJoel]

I haven’t used my Anova in quite a while, but when I was using it on a regular basis, I mostly cooked seafood and chicken. A chicken breast cooked sous vide is a lovely thing, never dry and perfect for a lunch platter when sliced and topped with a light sauce or dressing. Shrimp, I found, get an odd texture, and benefit from a quick finish in a sauté pan or the grill (or one of those kitchen torches). I know I made meat with it as well, but I really don’t recall the experience; we don’t eat much meat at my house. I think I did a couple of filets once, and finished them in a cast iron skillet. All-in-all, though, I’d have to say poached chicken breasts were my favorite application of the machine.

 

[Rocklobster]

I haven’t used my Anova in quite a while, but when I was using it on a regular basis, I mostly cooked seafood and chicken. A chicken breast cooked sous vide is a lovely thing, never dry and perfect for a lunch platter when sliced and topped with a light sauce or dressing. Shrimp, I found, get an odd texture, and benefit from a quick finish in a sauté pan or the grill (or one of those kitchen torches). I know I made meat with it as well, but I really don’t recall the experience; we don’t eat much meat at my house. I think I did a couple of filets once, and finished them in a cast iron skillet. All-in-all, though, I’d have to say poached chicken breasts were my favorite application of the machine.

Good to know..that will likely be my next meal..I have been reading up on things and, as per usual, I am experiencing information overload. Like anything else, trial and error is probably the best way to learn..

 

[Andy M.]

Check out the Serious Eats site. They have a lot of info and recipes for sous vide.

 

[Rocklobster]

Check out the Serious Eats site. They have a lot of info and recipes for sous vide.

Will do, Andy..thanks!

 

[Kayelle]

What a great gift Roch! I'm thinking you have the professional machine? I have the portable Anova and I'm still experimenting with it, so we'll learn together.
I was the least impressed with chicken breasts in mine, and the most impressed with Tri Tip that I don't think you have in Canada?
This will be perfect waiting for you to come home from a long day at work.

 

[powerplantop]

I haven’t used my Anova in quite a while, but when I was using it on a regular basis, I mostly cooked seafood and chicken. A chicken breast cooked sous vide is a lovely thing, never dry and perfect for a lunch platter when sliced and topped with a light sauce or dressing. Shrimp, I found, get an odd texture, and benefit from a quick finish in a sauté pan or the grill (or one of those kitchen torches). I know I made meat with it as well, but I really don’t recall the experience; we don’t eat much meat at my house. I think I did a couple of filets once, and finished them in a cast iron skillet. All-in-all, though, I’d have to say poached chicken breasts were my favorite application of the machine.

I forgot how good chicken was sous vide. Just remember white and dark meat cook to different temps.

 

[JustJoel]

What a great gift Roch! I'm thinking you have the professional machine? I have the portable Anova and I'm still experimenting with it, so we'll learn together.
I was the least impressed with chicken breasts in mine, and the most impressed with Tri Tip that I don't think you have in Canada?
This will be perfect waiting for you to come home from a long day at work.

Curious as to why the chicken breasts didn’t impress you. I always loved how mine turned out. Granted, I was making them to be sliced or cubed and served on top of (or in) salad or in sandwiches... I always packed ‘em into the vacuum bag with a couple slices of lemon and a few sprigs of thyme or tarragon.

 

[Kayelle]

I used bone in breasts Joel, and was advised to try it again using boneless. I know everyone else is happy with chicken breasts in the SousVide, so it could be just me.
I'm not a big fan of white meat chicken in the first place, so that could be it.

 

[Rocklobster]

What a great gift Roch! I'm thinking you have the professional machine? I have the portable Anova and I'm still experimenting with it, so we'll learn together.
I was the least impressed with chicken breasts in mine, and the most impressed with Tri Tip that I don't think you have in Canada?
This will be perfect waiting for you to come home from a long day at work.

It's a Sous Vide Supreme. Not sure if its a professional model or not..but I am looking forward to trying everything in it.

 

[Kayelle]

I'm looking forward to doing a SousVide boneless leg of lamb. I'm expecting it to be evenly perfectly cooked, and I'll finish it on our searing side burner on the grill.
Costco has beautiful New Zealand boneless leg of lamb in an elastic net that would be perfect.



That's a lot of meat for us though, so anyone who loves lamb like we do is invited to dinner.

 

[Steve Kroll]

It's good for steaks, yes, but unless you're making some extra thick steaks or a whole tenderloin for a special occasion, I usually skip the sous vide as it adds an unnecessary extra step to what is otherwise a simple meal to prepare.

I find myself using mine more and more for preparing larger cuts of meat, such as roasts. One of my favorite uses is to make sirloin tip roast, which can sometimes be on the tough side. 12 hours in a sous vide, followed by a quick sear, turns out a succulent roast you can eat as is or slice paper thin for sandwiches.

Another great use is for cooking food straight from the freezer. Many nights, I'll just pull out a frozen pork chop or piece of fish and put it into the circulator (you can use the same bag it was stored in). In no time at all, dinner's on the table.

Good for dinner parties, too, where you need to hold something at a specific temperature for a period of time.

 

[caseydog]

Check out the Serious Eats site. They have a lot of info and recipes for sous vide.

ChefSteps.com has a great downloadable PDF sous vide guide with times and temperatures that I use a lot. They also have some cool videos on YouTube.

CD

 

[blissful]

For cheese making, some makers use a double boiler set up, some (like myself) use an electric roaster, and some are using the sous vide too. The kettle of milk goes in the kitchen sink, water in the sink, then heat the water in the sink with the sous vide to the temperature you want to bring the milk to. It works much like a double boiler, very gentle slow heating which is necessary for making cheese.

 

[Rocklobster]

For cheese making, some makers use a double boiler set up, some (like myself) use an electric roaster, and some are using the sous vide too. The kettle of milk goes in the kitchen sink, water in the sink, then heat the water in the sink with the sous vide to the temperature you want to bring the milk to. It works much like a double boiler, very gentle slow heating which is necessary for making cheese.

good to know if I ever want to get my cheese on!

 

[caseydog]

good to know if I ever want to get my cheese on!

I'm known to be somewhat cheesy at times, but I've never made cheese.

I'm thinking that sous vide would be a great way to heat milk for cheese.

I have not cooked chicken sous vide. I'm thinking that white meat, like BSCB would do well sous vide. Dark meat chicken doesn't need sous vide, IMO. Chicken has to be cooked well done, and dark meat really doesn't easily dry out on the grill, like white meat can.

I also have not experimented with veggies cooked sous vide. That sounds like an experiment for a boring, cold winter day.

CD